The dramatic rise in house prices has slowed, with January showing the lowest monthly growth since June.
The price slowdown comes as new figures show house sales returned to pre-COVID 19 levels.
However, affordability remains at historically low levels as house price rises continue to outstrip earnings growth.
According to the latest Halifax Price Index survey, prices rose by 0.3 per cent in January, although the annual rate of growth was nearly 10 per cent.
The average house price now stands at £276,759 after a quarterly growth of 3.1 per cent and yearly growth of 9.7 per cent was recorded in the survey.
Figures at a glance
While remaining the weakest performing area of the UK, London delivered its strongest performance in over a year with annual house price inflation rising for a third straight month to stand at 4.5 per cent, double the rate recorded in December.
Across England, the North West was once again the strongest performing region – up 12 per cent year-on-year, average house price of £213,200 – and now has the second-highest rate of annual growth in the UK.
Regional performance was pretty much in keeping with last year with Wales the strongest performing nation, with price inflation of 13.9 per cent and the average house price down slightly to £205,253.
Northern Ireland also continues to record strong price growth, with prices up 10.2 per cent on last year, giving an average property value in January of £170,982.
It was a similar story in Scotland, although the annual rate of inflation slowed to 8.9 per cent, with the average property price edging down to £192,698.
Commenting on the figures, Halifax managing director said: “Affordability remains at historically low levels as house price rises continue to outstrip earnings growth.
“Despite record levels of first-time buyers stepping onto the ladder last year, younger generations still face significant barriers to home ownership as deposit requirements remain challenging.
“This situation is expected to become more acute in the short-term as household budgets face even greater pressure from an increase in the cost of living and rises in interest rates begin to feed through to mortgage rates.”
The Halifax House Price Index is the UK’s longest-running monthly house price series with data covering the whole country going back to January 1983. The annual change figure is calculated by comparing the current month’s non-seasonally adjusted figure with the same month a year earlier.
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